Living in the suburbs can be a great experience: it’s a great place to raise children; the school systems are usually superior to inner cities; and there is room enough to hear birds singing and crickets chirping. But all too often, even those suburbanites who want to live a “greener” lifestyle shrug apologetically and say, “There’s not much I can do to be more eco-friendly.

It’s not like I live on a farm.” One doesn’t have to live on a farm to be more eco-friendly. And one doesn’t have to go to ridiculous extremes, either. You don’t have to dig through your bathroom trash to find empty toilet paper rolls to recycle, or cut up your tube of toothpaste to get the last little bit. All it takes is a little bit of common sense and a few minutes’ evaluation of your lifestyle. And you can start small.

To begin with, figure out your goals. Do you want to reduce your carbon footprint on the earth? Do you want a healthier, less processed diet? Are you looking to reduce chemicals in your environment? Once you have decided on your goals, you can take the first, beginning steps to achieve those goals. Reducing Carbon Footprints This term is often used to refer to the amount of pollution each of us contributes to the earth. How does one reduce his or her own amount of pollution?

First, it helps to look at one’s lifestyle to see where cutbacks are needed. Do you find yourself driving to the bank when it’s less than a mile away? Do you spend a lot of time at the cleaner’s putting chemicals on your clothes? Do you have (and use) a recycle bin? Each of these things could be changed with minimal effort. Look for machine-washable clothing. Walk whenever possible. And toss that cardboard box into a recycle bin instead of the trash. Healthier Lifestyle One of the simplest actions you can take to give yourself and your family a healthier lifestyle is to look at what you are purchasing in the grocery store.

For example, a few minutes’ research on Google will show that those eggs you buy every week or two are not only months old, but come from farms where chickens are bred to produce more eggs than they can safely lay, where they are crammed together so tightly that they can barely stand, and where their beaks are cruelly trimmed to prevent them from pecking each other in such tight conditions. And where do their faeces end up? On the ground, where they stand in it their entire lives. (http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/factory-farming/chickens/chicken-industry/).

In the suburbs, it is usually possible to purchase eggs – and chicken – at local farmers’ markets. If you are adventurous, it is usually even possible to have one or two hens in the backyard; it costs very little to feed and house them, and without a rooster (not necessary for eggs) they are quiet and docile; and you can be sure that the eggs they produce will be antibiotic-free and completely organic. And the manure they produce is wonderful for the garden! (For more information on keeping chickens, see Backyardchickens.com).

Consumers purchases enormous qualities of processed meats, frozen dinners, boxed foods, and waxed fruits. Not only is the nutritional value of these foods questionable, but the packaging adds to the landfills. It takes very little effort to cut up a roast chicken into slices to use for sandwiches, rather than buying some paper-thin, gluey brown stuff that passes for deli chicken.

And when you get those eggs at the farmers’ markets, you will be amazed at the variety of fruits and vegetables – usually at reasonable prices – that are produced by local farmers with few or no chemicals. And they taste like “real” fruits and vegetables! No pink tomatoes, waxy cucumbers, or perfectly-shaped but tasteless apples. If you like gardening, it is easy to plant a few tomatoes or peppers.

One doesn’t have to be a master gardener to enjoy their own produce. Reducing Chemicals Research has shown that there are more than 80,000 chemicals in use in the United States…and less than 10% have been even studied by the USDA. This means that 90% of the chemicals in our environment have not even been determined to be safe. Most Americans use vast numbers of chemicals without even realizing it.

The next time you wash your hair, look at the ingredients on the shampoo bottle. Can you even pronounce them, let alone know what they are? That green lawn that people strive for may look nice, but what has it done to the grasshoppers, the praying mantises, or the bees that are so vital for pollination? Americans too often assume that a product is “safe” simply because it’s for sale in the store. Nothing could be further from the truth.

For generations, our ancestors used simple lye-and-fat based soaps that clean as well as any soap on the market. They washed their hair with baking soda and rinsed with vinegar, leaving the hair softer and shinier than most shampoos can do. And they understood that caring for the local wildlife is more important than having a perfect lawn that is so chemical-laden that pets and children can’t play on it for hours or days after it has been fertilized. Conclusion In short, living a greener lifestyle is not only possible in the suburbs, but it’s easier and healthier than most people realize.

While radical changes to one’s lifestyle are certainly possible, they are not necessary to lower one’s carbon footprint. A few common-sense, simple steps can make a large difference in having a healthier, greener lifestyle, and they can have the added benefit of increased health, less stress, and a knowledge that you can, in fact, make a difference in the world.